I made this dish last night for an early Christmas celebration with friends. After watching me stir this constantly for 40 minutes, my girlfriend said, "no wonder no one every makes this!"

So beware! Unlike most of my recipes that are simple and quick, this dish takes work but it's worth every minute and is one of my family's very favorite meals.

If you are making this for the holidays, make sure you've got help with the other dishes or someone there to help stir or remind you to add broth. My good friend and ex-next door neighbor LIsa and I always made this dish together. It made the stirring more fun - lots of time to chat and sip some wine!

Chanterelles

This golden, wild mushroom is a chef's dream. Their rich, meaty flavor makes them perfect for a vegan or vegetarian meal. They are very pricey (I paid around $20 a pound yesterday but a few weeks ago they were on sale for $15 a pound) but they are worth every penny and it only takes a half pound in this recipe to serve 5 to 6 people.

Timing is Everything

I'm kind of a nazi when it comes to serving risotto. It must be eaten the minute it is ready! So if you are serving a soup or salad with dinner, it must either be served with the risotto or after it. You can't make it and let the risotto sit on the stove. It should be served "tender to bite".

Can Risotto be Vegan?

Risotto is often made with lots of butter and sometimes cream. It also is usually finished with more butter and a good parmesan cheese. Chicken broth is often used for the stock. Vegetarians can just substitute veggie broth and they are good to go. To make it vegan, I cook it with extra virgin olive oil and Earth Balance vegan buttery spread.

Parmesan is difficult to replace but my daughter-in-law, Karina, uses a combination of vegetarian nutritional yeast, garlic powder, sea salt and dried parsley flakes. I tried this last night and it was wonderful.

If I haven't scared you off with the price of the chanterelles and the difficulty and critical timing of the dish, here's the recipe. Trust me, it's worth the time and trouble!

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Roasted Chanterelle Mushroom Risotto

[makes 6 servings]

For the roasted chanterelles (make ahead)

1 tablespoon vegan buttery spread

8 ounces rinsed chanterelle mushrooms, cut into 1 inch pieces

1 peeled shallot, thinly sliced

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon fresh thyme, minced (or 1/2 teaspoon dried)

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

For the risotto

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 yellow onion, peeled, cut in half and thinly sliced

3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

2 cups arborio rice

1 cup dry white wine

6 cups veggie broth

1 tablespoon vegan buttery spread

Vegan parmesan to taste (vegetarians: 1/4 cup parmesan cheese)

For the vegan parmesan

4 tablespoons vegetarian nutritional yeast

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes, crumbled

To prepare the roasted chanterelles, you'll need a large roasting pan, at least 9 by 13 inches.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Cover the bottom of the roasting pan with 1 tablespoon of buttery spread.